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  <title>Chapter 25</title>
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            <h1 class="title">Chapter 25</h1>
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          <h2 class="subtitle">Iszak</h2>
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      <p class="first first-in-chapter first-full-width"><span class="first-letter first-letter-t">T</span>he man Iszak had once loved and respected as much as a brother still existed somewhere behind those dark eyes. He wanted to keep hating Marcus for his part in their sister’s disappearance—hell, he would have kept on, if he hadn’t recognized in Marcus some of the same self-hatred he saw when he looked in the mirror every day.</p>
      <p class="subsq">Marcus’s brows drew together. “You’re not going to go after Evie, are you?”</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Fuck, man, I don’t know. But I’m sure as shit not doing anything with my dick flapping in the breeze like this.”</p>
      <p class="subsq">Marcus moved behind him, and a moment later, the ropes loosened. Iszak pulled free and went to throw on his jeans while Marcus untied Lukas. He turned just in time to see a now freed Lukas throw a swift punch that connected solidly with Marcus’s chin. The russet-haired man’s head flew back with a snap and he spun, stumbling into Iszak.</p>
      <p class="subsq">Iszak reached out and righted the other man before he lost balance. He held Marcus’s elbow for a second longer, his other hand clenching into a fist.</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Go ahead. You’re entitled,” Marcus said, tilting his chin up as though inviting Iszak to give in to that urge.</p>
      <p class="subsq">Iszak let out a harsh snort and released Marcus. “Not in the mood. I’d rather save up for the real enemy, if it isn’t you. You said you could take us where Evie is, right? Does that mean you can take us anywhere quick?”</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Anywhere I’ve been to once, yeah. But I told you, I can’t take you to Belah. I can go <i>where</i> she is, just not <i>when</i>. She won’t be there now.”</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Show us,” Lukas said.</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Wait,” Iszak said, holding out a hand. “You promise Evie’s not in danger right now? How is she?”</p>
      <p class="subsq">“She’s about as good as someone who’s been a prisoner for five decades can be. She’s in no danger, though—not while Nikhil’s distracted.”</p>
      <p class="subsq">Iszak tilted his head, focusing on the nuances of the words as the air carried the sounds to his ears. No lies, but there were hidden truths, hidden fears that Marcus would rather not speak, and a definite essence of shame permeating every syllable. Marcus probably had no idea how lucky that one emotion made him.</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Is he distracted often?” Iszak asked.</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Not to this degree—not since I’ve known him.”</p>
      <p class="subsq">Iszak had to restrain himself from asking more questions about what Belah really meant to the Ultiori leader. They’d once been lovers—had even conceived a child together, though Nikhil wasn’t aware of the daughter’s existence. So why had he persisted in chasing Belah for so long?</p>
      <p class="subsq">That didn’t matter now. All that mattered was finding out how to get his and his brother’s mate back.</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Take us where he’s keeping her. We’ll figure out the rest once we know the lay of the land.”</p>
      <p class="subsq">Marcus nodded and grasped Iszak’s hand, along with Lukas’s.</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Brace yourselves,” he said. “This is never a fun experience, even for me.”</p>
      <p class="subsq">Darkness rushed in so fast, Iszak thought he’d have whiplash from the abrupt shift. He felt displaced, as though caught in a cyclone and spun in its vortex. He flailed with his free hand, and would have used both of them, if Marcus didn’t have a grip so tight on his other one.</p>
      <p class="subsq">His world spun through a void, and he was reminded of the utter terror he’d felt the first time his plane had been shot down over in Vietnam. He’d been too cocky, too self-assured about his piloting abilities. He was born to fly, after all. But he wasn’t born to be strapped into a giant pile of useless metal plummeting straight to the earth.</p>
      <p class="subsq">Iszak hit the ground with a bone-crunching thud. It took a moment for him to get his bearings. Marcus’s vise-like grip on his hand released, and so did Iszak’s control over his supper. He rolled to the side and heaved, his eyes watering.</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Fuck,” he muttered, wiping his lips. He blinked and looked around.</p>
      <p class="subsq">“What is this place?” Lukas asked, standing shakily and angling away from his own puddle of sick.</p>
      <p class="subsq">Marcus seemed none the worse for wear, aside from looking a little green around the gills. “It’s <i>Sayid’s</i> penthouse—where he stays when he’s in the city.”</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Looks like a fucking mausoleum,” Iszak said, moving from the soapstone foyer into the high-ceilinged room. The place looked like it belonged in some ancient temple in Egypt. Every surface seemed to be carved from giant slabs of pale, sand-colored stone. Massive columns topped by carved, golden palm leaves bordered the entire room, extending up two stories to an elaborately painted ceiling that belonged in another era. A huge, gilded throne with clawed feet sat at one end of the room opposite a huge door made of shining wood, into which was carved a series of robed figures with animal heads atop their shoulders.</p>
      <p class="subsq">Iszak followed his brother and Marcus through the door into a smaller room that was still massive in scale. A large bed rested on a dais against one wall with a wooden trunk at its foot, but the most prominent feature in the room was a masterfully carved St. Andrews cross with luxurious, blue silk padding attached to the surface. At each point in the large X-shaped contraption were sheepskin-padded shackles. Glancing down, Iszak saw beneath the cross was a channel cut deep into the polished marble of the floor that led to a shallow basin about two feet in diameter. Upon closer inspection, he discovered the basin was lined with a hammered silver bowl with handles attached to two sides, jutting up from the edge. A spout aligned with the channel in the floor to allow for pouring out of whatever liquid the basin was intended to collect.</p>
      <p class="subsq">“What the fuck?” Lukas said. “Did he build this for her?”</p>
      <p class="subsq">Iszak was too focused on the channel in the floor to answer his brother. His belly turned to ice at the thought of what the basin was meant to hold.</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Marcus, remember where our Nanyo lives?” Iszak asked, his voice sounding as though it were coming from somewhere outside his body. His ears buzzed with the barely contained rage at the man who had taken his mate.</p>
      <p class="subsq">Marcus’s head snapped around so hard Iszak could swear he heard the man’s neck crack.</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Yeah … why?” Marcus asked cautiously.</p>
      <p class="subsq">“Because that’s where you’re taking us now.”</p>
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